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Frequently asked questions

iwitness24: How does it work?

iwitness24: What is it?

This is a platform to make it really easy to share images with your local newspaper and websites. We want your news –and you can join the growing number of people able to connect with us
With iwitness24, you change from reader to reporter and can share and sell your images.iwitness24 is a community of citizen reporters who send, broadcast and comment on their news images on the site. Join Us!

Archant is committed to community publishing and we already handle hundreds of images and stories – and this website is about making that much, much easier.But if you’ve got a real news scoop that you think might make money by selling it, this website gives you immediate access to the world’s media.iwitness24 negotiates the best sales prices for your content and gives you back up to 33% of the final price.

Who is it for?

It really is for everyone. Whether it’s a picture of a community fete, a school event, a fire or anything that’s happening in your community – we’d like to see it and we will publish as many of the images as possible within our print titles and websites.

And, you might have a genuine scoop picture that you think as well of being of interest, might make some money. If so, iwitness24 is there to make that as easy and as profitable as possible.

How can I send in my photos and videos?

How can I upload my photos and videos to iwitness24?

We only accept uploads from iwitness24 members. Click here to send your photos and videos. We recommend sending photos from your computer, to make the identification of your images easier. You can also send images from your iphone or Android-driven smartphone.

How do I make sure you received my photos or videos?

You will receive an e-mail from our editorial committee confirming that we received your submission. After our editorial committee has reviewed it, you'll either get a notification of its validation, or a message explaining why we could not validate it and some helpful links to point you in the right direction.

What is the maximum size for my photos or videos?

We accept large files up to 200 Mb. Do not compress your videos or photos before sending them, as this will reduce their quality.Sending your photos and videos can take a long time depending on the size of the file and your connection speed. Sending a 5Mb video with a DSL connection at 512k can take as long as 5 minutes. If your video is too large, you can also cut it in parts.

Why can’t I put more than 20 photos in a series of images?

Most stories consist of three to ten photos. It is important for the iwitness24 community, and for our media clients, to be able to see easily what a bulk of photos is all about.Nonetheless, we should be able to choose between all the pictures you took of an event. Don’t forget to take different angles: take some close-ups, some medium shots, and some wide-angle shots so we can get a feel for the whole scene that took place. Only one photo is almost never enough to form an opinion, tell a story, or convince a buyer.If you have a big series with over 20 equally important photos to offer, you can write this down in the description when you upload the photos and send it in two parts to Iwitness24.

What photos or videos should I send in?

What photos or videos are published and sold first?

iwitness24 is website where you share and sell your news footage. Did you witness a big event, a fire, an accident, a crash, a natural catastrophe?Did you film or photograph a specific protest, or a sports event, or a celebrity? Were you at the right place at the right time? You might be in possession of a scoop!Sometimes we publish and sell old photos or videos, but only when they are exclusive, have a particular interest, or when these images bring forth unpublished information.On the other hand, the pictures taken during your holidays, that are a few years old but with no new interest, or are of bad quality will not be published on the website or proposed to iwitness24 clients.

Submit your images as quickly as possible

A story is only worth something if you send it within minutes or hours of the event taking place. You know that old "time is money" cliché? In the media, we really mean it. The more you wait, the less your images are worth. Send your news images quickly to have a chance to sell them to newspapers and magazines, or to the TV and web clients of iwitness24. Download our iPhone or Android apps to upload your images immediately from the scene.

Submit all your images - not just one photo

Avoid sending only one photo of an event. Seeing just one image is often not enough to have a clear idea of what took place.Send an array of photos from various angles (close-ups of faces, wide-angles of the whole scene) so the iwitness24 community and our clients can understand what exactly what you witnessed.

What information do you need from me when I send you my images?

An image can’t be validated if we don’t have all the necessary information.You must, at least, provide us with the following information:

Who is in the photo/video, and what we see him or her or them doing

Where (exact location) and when (what day, what time) you took the photo/video

Why you think it is newsworthy

Any other circumstances relevant to the time you shot the footage

If the photo is alone or if it is part of a series

When you upload content to our website, you will have the opportunity to include all these details. If you use e-mail to send your submissions, you must answer the above questions in the body of the message. If we need more information, we might contact you by e-mail or phone.It is fundamental that you be completely honest from the start, and continue to be so should we ask for more information by e-mail or by phone.
IMPORTANT: Newspapers and magazines have "deadlines" and can't wait around for answers to their questions. If you want a better chance of selling your work, be sure to be quick to answer our questions and be easily reachable by email or phone.

My images are too blurry or too dark… can I send them anyway?

iwitness24 prefers good quality content to offer the best photos or videos to their members and to the media.If your images are too compressed, too blurry, too dark or too pixelated, iwitness24's editorial committee might not validate them. However, if your images have a specific interest (if they comprise a big scoop and your photos or videos are exclusive) then these documents - even of bad quality - can have a real interest in the media.

Do you alter my photos?

We may resize, crop, tweak, sharpen, recolor and otherwise enhance a photo for publication, and indeed any publisher may do the same. However, we always keep an original unaltered copy of every photo you send us.

Can I send my photo archives?

iwitness24 prefers timely news documents.If your images are a few months or years old, they are less interesting for our community and for the media. Nonetheless, if you think you have in your possession exclusive, interesting pictures that portray a past event in a new perspective, then please don't hesitate to share them with us.

How are my photos and videos sold?

Why choose iwitness24 to sell your images and not deal directly with the media?

You might not know the real value of your scoop, but you can be sure that our clients do! We've seen many amateur photographers or videographers that thought they were getting a good deal when selling photos or videos directly to buyers in the media - images and videos that could have been worth much, much more.By selling your images with iwitness24, you automatically guarantee them exposure to media houses around the world.Thanks to our extensive network of clients (7,000 internationally) and the exclusive iwitness24 auction system, we can offer you the opportunity to sell your work to the highest bidder IN EACH COUNTRY in which we have clients, and to maximize your return.The more your photograph is worth for a particular client, the higher your earnings. If your photo or video is sold to many buyers, you will receive a commission from each sale.

What do I make if iwitness24 sells my images?

We, the iwitness24 team, like to keep it simple. As such, we've listened to our members' feedback and simplified our commission system. Here's how it works:

You, the reporter, will get a 33% return on images sold to traditional media outlets (like newspapers and magazines) in your home country (that is, wherever you signed up with iwitness24).

You'll get a 33% return on images sold to online media outlets

You'll get a 33% return on images sold to media outlets outside of your home country

You'll get a 33% return on content that was validated over one month ago and has been put in our archives.

How does iwitness24 sell my content?

When you send iwitness24 an image or video, you automatically grant us an exclusive worldwide license to market that document for a period of 15 days.During that period, you agree not to publish the document anywhere else (you're encouraged to post links to it all over the web though). When the 15 days are up, the license becomes non-exclusive. We will still try to sell your images, but now you will also be able to publish them yourself on a photoblog or a picture-sharing site -- wherever you'd like.If we don't think that your photo or video will sell immediately (if, let's say, it's not a scoop), we will tell you within 48 hours and it will be treated with a non-exclusive license and sold at fixed price from our image bank (which means you can publish your document outside of iwitness24).We understand that the work is yours and that you should have the right to share it. However, it is important to likewise understand that we must have an exclusive license for truly newsworthy images in order to get you the best possible deal for your work.

What is the difference between an exclusive license and a non-exclusive license?

It's an important distinction. When you send a photo to iwitness24, you sign an agreement to not sell that photo to another site, publish it elsewhere, or share it in any way for a period of 15 days. This is a 15-day exclusive license.After these fifteen days, the license becomes non-exclusive. Your image is integrated into our image bank and can be sold or distributed elsewhere.

Can I change my mind after sending a photo to iwitness24?

No. When you join iwitness24.com and send us a photo, you automatically grant us an exclusive worldwide license for three months.This is a legal agreement that cannot be revoked even if you leave iwitness24.com. After this three-month period, the license becomes non-exclusive but perpetual, meaning the image will remain in our image bank.

Why can’t I buy pictures on iwitness24.com?

iwitness24 is a marketplace that works on a consumer to business principle. It means that anyone over 18 is allowed to sell his or her images, but only professionals can buy them.

I am a buyer for a media agency and I want to get a photo.

It's easy! Just join Citizenside Pro. It will only take a few minutes. You will gain access to all of our stories and our archived image bank, and be able to contact us immediately.

Where can I find your full terms and conditions?

Right here. You must read these terms and agree to them before you join iwitness24.com

Which submissions sell best?

iwitness24 sells all kinds of photos and videos to the international media: events, accidents, sports, celebrities, miscellaneous stories... Most often, images sold are those that have a close link to news events. Our members that send us their exclusive content quickly are the most successful. Often their images are the first and only ones of a particular event, and they take a series of images or a series of videos varying in angles and with different kinds of shots (close-ups of people's faces and wide shots of the whole scene). Their submissions are of good quality and are not compressed.

How are my images sold?

Here's how it works:You send us your photo or video submission. After it gets validated by our editorial committee, it is immediately presented to our clientele of international media houses. If your document is a scoop, we then negotiate the best price for you (and for us!) and give you up to 65% of the sale price.If your document isn't considered a scoop, it becomes integrated into the iwitness24 image bank after validation by our editorial committee, and is immediately available to international media to be sold at a fixed price. Just because your image isn't a scoop doesn't mean it doesn't have value. Think about how many times you see the same photo appear in different newspapers or magazines? Each time it does, the owner of that photo (in this case, you!) gets paid.Strictly speaking, we don't "sell" images at all. We are instead a broker between sellers (you) and buyers (the international media). The seller licenses the buyer for publication in a number of different ways. This is an important distinction because it means that the image remains your property at all times. In a legal sense, you retain the copyright.

Why do I want to sell my images in series?

By putting your images into the same series, you raise the value of your story by presenting exclusivity to one buyer. In effect, if you sell your photos of one series to multiple newspapers, it will no longer be a scoop because they will all be sharing the information. Buyers are primarily interested in exclusivity and high quality, both of which can increase their sales.

How do I know that my images were sold and published in the press?

We will keep you updated, by e-mail or by phone, of propositions to confirm the price of your scoops and we will do our best to let you know about intended dates of publication.

Do I have any say over where my images are sold?

Sellers and buyers remain anonymous.

When will I be informed that my submission was sold?

You will be informed as soon as the sale is finalised.

How will I get paid?

Congrats, hotshot! You made a sale. Once the auction on your image is over, the buyer pays iwitness24. iwitness24 then pays you after a 60 day "safety period" (to prevent abuse of the agreement), which begins when iwitness24 gets paid.You will get paid directly into your PayPal account. If you do not have one, subscribe for free at www.paypal.com. If your country is not eligible for PayPal, we will transfer the payment directly by electronic transfer into your bank account or by cheque. Please note that we will never ask you for your credit card number.

How much is a story worth?

As much as an editor is ready to pay to publish it. Most stories go for anything between 200 and 2,000 euros. More exceptional or exclusive images can bring in more money. For example, the photos of Princess Caroline of Monaco's daughter at her birth were sold for nearly 1.5 million euros in 1999. For that reason, iwitness24 holds a competition between different media outlets to get you the best price out there.

What are the fees taken by iwitness24?

iwitness24 doesn't keep any fixed fee. We keep a commission from 25 to 35% of the sale price. Therefore, if we help you sell a scoop for 20,000€, you will be paid up to 13,000€.
If you'd like to know more, sign up to iwitness24 and check out our commission rate card.

I am a professional. Can I sell my photos on iwitness24?

Of course! You just have to give us your contact information when you register. You might even enjoy a better commission rate, depending on the volume of sales that you have on our site. iwitness24 works with different kinds of professionals. We work with:

My photo could be a breach of privacy...

The laws regarding privacy rights are different in every country. If we have doubts, we will place your submission in the "private" section of our site, which is not visible to the general public, and/or part of your submission may be blurred out.

What if I photograph a crime?

Different crimes should be treated in different ways. We will strive to retain your anonymity whenever possible, but in some cases we might be legally bound to advise the police of your contact details.
However, even in such cases it may still be possible to publish a picture with incriminating details (such as faces, license plates, street names, etc.) removed or blurred out.Please note that we won't hesitate to contact the police if we believe that you yourself were involved in the crime.

Keep your photos authentic

iwitness24 only offers original, authentic, unaltered photos and videos to the media.Also, please don’t use iwitness24 as a forum for free advertising.

My Account and other practical issues

How can I join iwitness24?

Anyone (18 or older) can become a citizen reporter on iwitness24. You can register in any country, and we will sell your photo in any country. To register with us, click here.

How much does it cost to sign up?

Not a penny. Registering with iwitness24 is completely FREE.

Why do you need my contact info?

We need to be sure that you are who you say you are. In some cases, we may need to contact you by e-mail or telephone, especially if your editorial committee is worried about the authenticity or legality of the content you've submitted.

Why do you need my telephone number?

Three reasons.First, if you want to send us your work directly from your mobile phone, we have to have your number on file. This allows us to identify you as the sender when a photo or video comes in. Please note: If you submit to us from your mobile phone, we can't tell which phone it came from! This is why we ask you to include your mobile number in the subject line or message.Second, we may have to contact you quickly, by way of SMS or phone call, if we need further details about a photo or if you don't respond to e-mails quickly enough. This is almost always easier if we have your mobile number, rather than having to bother you at home or at work.Third, we might send a text message to your mobile phone when you join iwitness24.com that contains details of how to send us photos and videos. We keep your number confidential and will not share your information with anybody.

How can I edit my contact information?

You can modify all your info under the "Edit my account" link on your profile page.

How can I edit my password?

You can change your password under the "Edit my account" link on your profile page.

How can I edit my photos/videos?

Once you have submitted your work, you cannot modify it. We also want to remind you that we only accept authentic, unmodified, unedited images.

How can I edit my personal info?

You can access and edit all your personal information the "Edit my account" link on your profile page.

What is a "certified" member?

We are aiming to build strong ties with our most trusted contributors and we might get to the point where we can offer them the chance to post their contributions directly themselves, without waiting for our editors' validation. These are our "certified" contributors. As soon as they upload images, the article is posted to the homepage of iwitness24 in all its glory. These packages will be distinguished with a "not vetted" mention, and can be revisited by our editors later to change their status.

I don't want to be an iwitness24 member anymore.

We'd hate to see you go, but if you wanted to leave the iwitness24 community, just shoot us an e-mail. We will respond to confirm that your member information has been deleted from our lists.
Please note: If you sent in a submission within the last three months, the exclusive license is still active for the rest of the three-month period, even if you've chosen to leave iwitness24. This allows us to protect the investments of the clients that bought, or are in the process of buying, the submissions.